Recently, Eating Well Magazine published the article, “Is Your Health food Really Healthy?” I love articles like this because they dispel the myths that just because something SAYS it’s healthy or is organic, doesn’t necessarily mean it is good for you. Learning to be label saavy is key in achieving optimal wellness. Not sure where to start? Here are a few crash course tips:
1. If you see: partially hydrogenated oils — TRANSLATION = TRANS FAT – put it back.
2. If you cannot pronounce it – better to leave it alone.
3. If the product has more than 5 ingredients (unless they are vegetables or known healthful ingredients), you don’t need all that extra stuff.
4. Watch for sugar. Labels don’t always say “SUGAR” on them. Sugar can be disguised as “Corn sweetener, corn syrup, or corn syrup solids, Dehydrated Cane Juice, dextrin, dextrose, fructose, fruit juice concentrate, glucose, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, lactose, maltodextrin, malt syrup, maltose , maple syrup, molasses, raw sugar, rice syrup, sorghum or sorghum syrup, sucrose, syrup, turbinado sugar, xylose, ” among others.
5. Look at the ingredients, not the health claims on the box.
Whole, REAL foods, don’t require labels, so aim to eat as much fresh produce as possible.
Want to know more? “Six Healthy-Sounding Foods That Really Aren’t”, go to http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_reports_information/is_your_health_food_really_healthy
For more tips on label reading, visit
Photo above from Eating Well Magazine
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